Violence in Parliament over Minimum Wage Bill

A fight broke out in Parliament during a Labour Committee meeting to discuss the National Minimum Wage Bill in detail, says a TimesLIVE report. Committee chair Sharome van Schalkwyk described the incident as ‘unfortunate’ and said it was not an indication of how South Africans resolve differences of opinion. The committee blamed members of the SA Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu) for the disruption, but Saftu has put the blame on parliamentary security. ‘The Portfolio Committee on Labour is disappointed with the conduct of alleged Saftu activists who sought to disrupt a committee meeting meant to discuss the National Minimum Wage Bill‚ clause by clause,’ said Van Schalkwyk. A video reportedly sent to TimesLIVE by a Parliament staff member shows a violent fight breaking out in committee room 1. A woman can be heard screaming ‘My baby!’‚ seemingly while being physically removed from the room. Punches also appear to be thrown. Van Schalkwyk said that a handful of activists ‘donning Saftu regalia’ disrupted the meeting. Saftu‚ however‚ tells a different story‚ saying that 15 of its leaders were ‘forcefully evicted’ from the meeting. The federation said a letter it sent to the committee complaining that‚ among other things‚ its presentation on the Bill was completely ignored‚ was not tabled for consideration. ‘We refused to leave the committee meeting until our letter was tabled to the portfolio committee for consideration and a decision made thereon. In response, the chairperson called on the parliamentary security services to remove us from the venue.’